2009 Women of Color Award Winners
Rick Stevens, senior vice president, Boeing Human Resources
“In a sense, I’m mentoring the entire com-
and Administration, says he brought Clayton to his team to
lend her talent, passion and commitment to the growth and
pany,” Clayton says. “Having people reach their
development of employees.
full potential is the legacy I hope to the leave
“In a sense, I’m mentoring the entire company,” Clayton
the company with when I fi nally retire.”
says. “Having people reach their full potential is the legacy
I hope to the leave the company with when I fi nally retire.”
Banish the thought. Still far from retirement age, Clayton
estimates that she has mentored more than 40 people. One
of them, Barbara J. Wilson, had just been selected as the
new chief of staff to the president and CEO of Boeing when
she met Clayton. “Navigating the corporate environment at
Boeing can be challenging for any woman of color,” Wilson
D
riving individual, team and organizational perform- recalls. “Norma’s willingness to listen...challenge me to go
ance can be a tough job. And when your company’s further, take risks, set new goals, achieve at higher personal
long-term goal is aligning the skills, abilities and and professional standards and expose to me to an expanded
competencies of 160,000 other employees to produce some network has been pivotal to my growth and success over
of the world’s most sophisticated products, the task becomes the past fi ve years.” Wilson is now the director and program
daunting. Unless your name is Norma B. Clayton, that is. manager to the T-45 training system.
In June of this year, After leadership roles in manufacturing, supply-chain/pro-
Boeing gave Clayton gram management and plant operations at Lockheed Martin,
On average, businesses whose em-
ployees are highly engaged:
the job of managing General Electric, RCA and General Motors, Clayton joined
the vast workforce McDonnell Douglas (later acquired by Boeing) in 1995 as the
-Generate 44% More Profi t
training (sometimes director of the machining center—one of the most impor-
-Increase Productivity by 70%
re-training) pro- tant parts suppliers to the F/A-18 fi ghter-bomber program.
-Reduce Undesirable Turnover by 75%,
grams to prepare its Clayton’s assignment was to turn around the quality and
and -Score 86% Higher in Customer
employee pool to manufacturing operations of defense manufacturing at the
Satisfaction
meet that realign- St. Louis site, and to develop and foster relationships at every
ment. And since she level—from executives to shop foremen, and crucially, with
Source Business 21
took over as vice the Union, which was on the verge of a strike.
president of Learning,
“The job would have been diffi cult for anyone,” recalls Ger-
Training and Develop-
ald E. Daniels, who served with a small group of executives
ment, her new organization has made tremendous progress
on the hiring panel. “Norma proved the leadership she dem-
towards improved learning management systems that pro-
onstrated in those interviews. She won respect by improving
mote employee development in a company whose products
performance in every way.”
remain on the cutting edge of high technology.
Clayton’s human resources magic is without peer, says Wesley
Clayton’s team of 550 staff supports employee learning and
Poriotis, founder and chairman of Wesley, Brown & Bartle Co.
workforce training in 42 global sites and more than 100 uni-
WB&B was the executive search fi rm that hired Clayton for
versities around the world. She also leads efforts to provide
the job. “Her business acuity and nurturing of all levels within
an integrated online training system to all Boeing employees,
the manufacturing ranks led to the success of a company that
plus more than 250,000 workers of supplier fi rms and busi-
was foundering,” Poriotis says. WB&B was founded in 1996
ness partners.
and is dedicated to the recruitment, retention and profes-
Boeing, like many of its industrial peers, has grown by merg- sional development of women and people of color.
ers and acquisitions as well as sales volume. But that growth
From making a success of a machining center in challenging
comes with its own challenges. Among them are incorpo-
circumstances, Clayton went on to hold key roles in Boeing’s
ration and alignment of legacy information systems and
integrated defense systems business unit, including vice
training programs with newer, state-of-the-art systems, which
president of supplier management and procurement, VP and
in turn involve user profi ciency challenges, security access
general manager, maintenance and modifi cation centers for
issues, system stabilization problems and corporate cultural
aerospace support of military aircraft and missiles, and VP,
change.
lean manufacturing and quality.
www.womenofcolor.net WOMENOFCOLOR | FALL 2009 21
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